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Jesus, our everlasting father
The child, sent by the Heavenly Father, will be called Everlasting Father?
Stunning. It’s not a name I would have thought Jesus would carry, given that He is not the first member of the Trinity, but the second, the Son of God. This paradox is worth exploring.
Sons, Baptism and Warfare
Occasionally I get to baptize men on our adventures and offer them the opportunity to baptize their children into the Kingdom. It is one of my favorite things to be a part of because it carries so much significance.
“But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.”
This morning I sat down with Jesus to confess my embarrassing numbness to the significance of this sacred Good Friday. Am I alone?
Bug Eyes and Butt Bubbles
8 days ago this grouper was safe on the ocean floor. After years of getting fat he fell prey to a crafty hunter. Once I hooked him, I reeled him up 1000'. The further I pulled him away from home…
Talk to Yourself, but Don't Listen to Yourself.
Some might suggest 2021 has not gotten off to a great start. And I might agree. I'm not alone I don't think. A popular meme right now commiserates "'I'd like to cancel my subscription to 2021... the 7-day trial is enough".
In any case we have an invitation to continue learning what we were invited to learn last year - that hope in anything but God is foolish. For our future preservation in tough circumstances we simply must learn to find our souls some better footing than to place our hope in a year, a person, a nation or an earthly outcome.
Hear God Speak Into Your 2021
Last new years my friend Cayce Harris emailed me a document that walked me through questions to ask Jesus.
It was a rescue, helping me receive some interpretation from God regarding the past year and some counsel on the upcoming year. Here it is for you.
Our Finest Hour?
"That could never happen. This is the U.S.A." -said almost everyone just a few months ago.
The world is getting its eyes opened. Nation by nation, kingdom by kingdom, the powers of evil have been working quite secretly to secure power and bring the world into chaos and darkness. It's like in the great movies, only it's real.
Can we handle this much reality?
Like our heroes, could this be our finest hour?
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The Opportunity of Pain [Blog]
“God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” -C.S. Lewis
How appropriate an observation from Lewis for this day and hour. Unquestionably our world is in pain, but is it yet ready to face the hard truth?
Many are certainly ready, and we are on duty to be God's signposts to help bring the rest of the family home. This is our time to be about the Father's business and ready for the Master's return. But are we ready?
Some of us are and some of us are not.
Some parts of us are, and some parts are not.
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Sonship is Driven by the Questions [Blog]
Friends and Allies,
I just released my interview with author John Eldredge. I'm not bragging, but I think it's pretty good for a newbie. Only God could have arranged this interview, so I take it as another encouragement we’re on the right path.
Jump! For God's Sake (pt.1)
Not all fathers are heroic but I'm unmovable in my conviction we are all meant to be. And that we can be.
I witnessed it myself in the remarkable story of my father. It’s likely my dad’s greatest lesson for me was when he taught me how to jump.
My Father is a Glacier
Like the chiseled Arctic coastline and like Jesus himself, God's sons are born again and disciplined in full view of the world. God's intention is that we become attention grabbing revelations of some aspect of His nature and goodness that can be seen nowhere else.
"Take your son to war" day
Becoming a True Son - Part 2
I was on my knees beside my son's bed with my hands spread across his trembling body. In surrender I had just thrown my earthly weapons down. In this war for the heart of my son, it appeared Baer and I had both become casualties.
He was a frightful sight…
Christmas Story Keepers
If you've ever made it to the end of the "Most wonderful time of the year" without having been awestruck again by the plan and humility of Jesus, you know how empty Christmas can be. To prevent this thievery and shine the spotlight on Jesus will take some thought and intentionality. We could sure use some good stories this Christmas. So I wanted to pass along some resources to help you share better stories than Ralphie or Buddy the Elf.
May the light of Truth burn brightly in your home this Christmas. Let's continue to tell the stories of Christ with a joyful heart and trust God for the rest.
May God bless you with the gift of Himself at Christmas.
Becoming Priests
I've been a full time pastor, a company CEO and have probably led a thousand more people in other capacities over the years, but these offices have proven mere child's play compared to offering a simple Bible study with my family.
I know few fathers today who crack open the Bible with their family...
I am your father. Sorry.
Becoming a True Son - Part 1
The first miles in my journey as a father are reminiscent of the Titanic's maiden voyage. Just below the calm surface of my manhood was an iceberg my son's ship was destined to hit. When it finally happened we were both ripped open by the collision.
No man can foresee that fatherhood, which usually begins so promisingly, will inevitably require a violent pruning of our manhood.
Real Men Sighted at Dunkirk
Maleness is beautiful.
It may be a little awkward to say, but isn't maleness beautiful? There are no arguments about whether femininity is. Many would now argue that diversity is. And tolerance. But who is arguing that authentic masculinity is? Nobody. And it is killing our sons. It is frankly killing us as men too.
A SHREWD INVESTMENT
Baer and I have mud stains in our pants that will never come out and memories of a shared adventure that no thief can steal. I am a wealthy man.
It was an expensive trip, but I think it would have been more expensive to not have taken it.
REBEL YELL - Part 1
With tack-sharp clarity I recall the day I was handed the keys to my family's 1978 Chevy Impala station wagon. Turd brown. It was there and then, as I stomped on the accelerator, that I began to road test a new strategy for coping with personal pain.
North Pole. South Pole.
By the hand of providence, I have a friend in Russia and a few in Scandinavia who are laboring for the gospel courageously. Like the running salmon that draw fishermen from all over the world to that region, there are a few men swimming furiously against the swift current of a culture that is attempting to neuter the God-given hearts of men and women. The result is the recasting of male and female
There and Back Again
I love seeing how through random relationships with kingdom minded men and women, the Father has outlasted my resistance. He continues to shock me with the intimate way He offers himself in both fathering and friendship. Somewhere along the way in the journey of my becoming a son, the Wild Goose called me into a relationship with a wildly glorious Russian saint,